Where are the young people? David Schectman (Miles Franklin)

[Cu Penny Hoarder]

Don't know if anyone has mentioned this yet, but perhaps part of the problem with young people and coins is that coin collecting is a slow paced activity. With social media and the internet, games that have incredible graphics, etc. there are lots of much faster paced items available for young people to get involved with.

exactly right

its that instant gratification that is ruining the youth

who wants to save and look and wait for years until they finally find and can afford the last walker to complete their set ?

It ruins everyone, not just the youth.

Collecting coins and accumulating bullion are 2 different things.

[Changechecker]

Young people began losing interest in coins when we started using debit cards and electronic payment. Coins and cash were dirty. Then they saw silver and gold both skyrocket and crash and listened as we gripped about how we should have/could have. Bitcoin and social network were the thing to do. I work with a very diverse group of all ages/genders/nationality and they all are on the phone all day. All millennials are different. I'm fortunate to know many who are hard working, educated, family oriented good people. My millennial son understands coins as insurance and bullion. He wouldn't know a Carson City from a peace dollar but he knows a silver diner for a can of soup is a good trade. He is also a tax paying home owner and father of three with a stay at home wife.

[Cu Penny Hoarder]

[Cu Penny Hoarder]

[Cu Penny Hoarder]

Young people began losing interest in coins when we started using debit cards and electronic payment. Coins and cash were dirty. Then they saw silver and gold both skyrocket and crash and listened as we gripped about how we should have/could have. Bitcoin and social network were the thing to do. I work with a very diverse group of all ages/genders/nationality and they all are on the phone all day. All millennials are different. I'm fortunate to know many who are hard working, educated, family oriented good people. My millennial son understands coins as insurance and bullion. He wouldn't know a Carson City from a peace dollar but he knows a silver diner for a can of soup is a good trade. He is also a tax paying home owner and father of three with a stay at home wife.

Yup, they're on the their phones ALL DAY. Millennials couldn't exist without their phone for 5 minutes... it's their umbilical cord to the world. The technocracy that's been created for these young kids is scary. That will only get worse as the years go by. I want no part of it.

Your son sounds like a good man. It's very expensive to raise 3 kids with a stay home wife who does not work. My younger half brother is in the same situation. Tell him to keep a close eye on his wife. Women who stay home often get bored, especially as their kids get older and become more self sufficient. They get on social media, other men pay attention to them and they start getting ideas.

[AGgressive Metal]

There is a bias on the part of the author of the original article here: only people in their 60s-90s would bother going through a company like his. Most younger people can much more easily buy on facebook groups, forums like this, eBay, retail sites like JM or APMEX, etc because we aren't able to afford massive amounts at once anyway. If you are old and don't like using the internet then calling up a dealer like that might make sense. Or if you have tons of money you want to buy with at once, which simply isn't going to be the case for people who are still in their working years trying to pay for homes, cars, children, etc. Its younger and younger-ish guys that have pioneered the whole concept of premium bullion and collecting vintage bullion - to the old timers Engelhard was melt bucket stuff. Look at all the new small batch products that have come out, some even from our own RC guys: Nate/Keystone, Rodebaugh, Market Harmony and Kurr are all Gen X or Millennials.

[68Camaro]

Don't know that its a bias as much as a business model. The small market represented by rc and bs doesn't even register as measureable when you look at the overall picture. The point he's making is that the younger generation is in general disconnected from the gold is money old school philosophy - they don't know what they don't know and they can't be taught. The people buying larger amounts are - yes - older because they saved their money.

[AGgressive Metal]

I don't mean his business model is biased in some negative sense, I'm saying his viewpoint to judge whether younger people are involved in the market is affected by his business model which is not necessarily meant to cater to younger smaller investors.

[68Camaro]

Some truth in that.

[everything]

Jeez, look back ten years, winner was equities. Au/Ag, no.

Still, through redit, and even on other forums I've seen younger folks just recently who do buy, but they don't play around with it. They did good on the stock market and cannot believe the returns, their is some .. ummm, speculation that yes, we have economic cycles, and this seems like to much winning so they pull some winnings out, and think hmmm, wow tangible assets, inflation protection, they are starting to feel it a little bit!

They don't screw around, they buy gold by the tube, and silver by the monster box, especially on these dips that we've seen. They know how to use the internet to research say .. investments. But, I've seen smaller buys from younger folks.

We don't give the few wise ones (probably very few), enough credit. But yeah, many are not into metal, physical metal and numismatics is a fringe investment club.

[InfleXion]

So is the question then do older people buy gold because they are older or because they've grown older? I'd say the latter, in that the more you experience life the more you realize the importance of planning for the future. Not just a product of having more savings, but having more of a saving mentality which is self-reinforced by having put away some savings at some point. I never learned about sound money until my mid 20s, and I still feel like I was early enough to the party. Although the prices these days sure seem nice even with the recent upticks.

[Cu Penny Hoarder]

So is the question then do older people buy gold because they are older or because they've grown older? I'd say the latter, in that the more you experience life the more you realize the importance of planning for the future. Not just a product of having more savings, but having more of a saving mentality which is self-reinforced by having put away some savings at some point. I never learned about sound money until my mid 20s, and I still feel like I was early enough to the party. Although the prices these days sure seem nice even with the recent upticks.

I'd say both. I started buying silver coins when I was 11 years old, mainly because it was a hobby. Gold was a pipe dream at that point. I started buying silver in size when I was 19. In 1984/85 my LCS owner was using junk bags as door stops (no joke). People just didn't want it, I guess most were scared by the Hunt Bros event a few years earlier. I didn't start buying gold until 2002 or so.

[AGgressive Metal]

Another thing to consider: PMs are - unless you are speculating and going in and out (nothing wrong with that) - a hedge. If you are young and most of your income is being consumed on food/housing/car/children/taxes/college loans, etc then you don't have large asset positions to hedge. You don't need an "inflation hedge" if you don't have a big pile of currency in the bank in danger of losing value to inflation.

[68Camaro]

Hedge is a more modern term and has a specific function. PMs do include that function but more precisely PMs are the definition of wealth and to hold them is asset protection.

What can I say about the rest? Yes, if you have no assets to protect then PMs are not an option, by definition. And that is the sad state of most of America now and especially those under 40 or 50. PMs make no sense to people that don't actually own anything outright. And I think that is part of the point of the OP reference.